Page 111 of The Beautiful Dead

And I saw it—the shift. The ripple of something cold, something dangerous. He rolled his shoulders, testing the chains, feeling their weight. Searching for any weakness he could find.

Eventually, he looked at the older man—the one in charge. And he smiled. Slow. Sharp. Blood stained teeth glistened in the dim light.

Salvatore smiled back. Warmer than any expression I’d seen on him until now. And then he said the words that cracked the foundation of everything. “It’s a pleasure to finally meet you, Domino. Salvatore Gallo—your father.”

I felt it.

The way the room tilted.

The way Domino fractured.

He didn’t speak. Didn’t blink.

He just stared.

He had suspected. I knew he had. The whispers in the dark corners of his mind had tormented him for years, gnawing at the edges of his sanity. But to hear it spoken out loud, in cold, unwavering truth?

His fingers curled into fists. The chains rattled. His body remained eerily still, but I knew better. Something had snapped.

The Gallos had no idea what they had just unleashed.

Salvatore exhaled like he was already bored. “Federico didn’t tell you?”

Domino’s voice was deathly quiet. Razor-sharp. “You’re lying.”

Salvatore hummed. “You think Federico raised you out of loyalty? Out of obligation? Love?” He met Domino’s stare, unflinching. “He kept you because you were useful.”

The room held its breath.

Salvatore continued, voice dripping with ice. “He had your mother killed because she threatened everything. She was going to take you away—to me. He murdered Catalina because he was afraid. Afraid that if the truth came out, you would realize the power in your blood. That you were never his.”

A pause. “But I suppose, in the end, he trained you well, didn’t he? Broke you just enough to make you his most valuable weapon.”

A crack split the air. Something unseen, something irreparable. Domino laughed. Low. Quiet. Not humor. Something else.

Diego scoffed. “Nothing to say? Maybe we hit him too hard.”

“Or maybe he’s just in shock,” Ellio snickered.

Enzo exhaled sharply. “Let’s focus. We didn’t bring them here for banter.”

Luca hummed in agreement. “We need to decide what to do with them. We can’t just let them walk out of here.”

Salvatore considered his sons before his gaze settled on me once more. Cold calculation glinted in his eyes. “You, however… You might be worth something. A trade, perhaps.”

Domino finally spoke.

His voice was quiet. Deceptively calm.

“Touch him…” His eyes burned with something primal, something that wanted to tear them apart with its teeth. “And I’ll cut your heart out.”

The entire room went still.

Ellio whistled low under his breath, grinning. “That’s cute. But in case you haven’t noticed, big guy, you’re chained to the ceiling.”

Domino smiled. A sharp curve of his lips that sent ice down my spine.

“You don’t need to worry about me,” he murmured. “You should be worrying about yourselves.”

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